I'll answer #1 The milk residue will not hurt anything so don't worry about that!!!

Whew, thanks, gardenluv. One down ;-).

I'll try to answer:
1. I agree, the old milk residue doesn't matter. Some say to clean your containers well. i really don't bleach my pots and containers, nor my tools, and haven't had any problems gardening organically over many years.
2. The idea behind toilet paper rolls is to be able to plant out in plugs that will decompose and not really have to disturb the roots of your seedlings. So it's ok for the roll to be sort of decomposing. If you are putting the rolls in a half gallon jug, why not just put them in tightly, and pour your soil all over to fill them. If they are loose, you could stuff a little newspaper in there to tighten them.
3. I don't have any really old seeds but what have you got to lose? I would definitely go ahead and sow them. Several people report each year success with old seeds germinating. Even new seeds won't get 100% germination, neither in nature do we got 100% of seeds making new plants.
4. don't know about the birch trees. I think you will have more success with the seeds germinating and then you might not have success once planted out due to them adapting better to another zone or climatic conditions. You also might want to try to google about the seeds to see if they are seeds that do better if soaked or nicked first.
5. If I had an abundance of seeds, and had successfully direct sown them in the past, i think i would hold back some for spring direct sowing, to hedge my bets. Becoz nothing is guaranteed, and one or more of your containers might not germinate.
laurie

Birch: "Propagate typical species by seeds and cultivars by grafting".

Quick browse through Trees of Vancouver, Straley, shows several commonly being grown there -

Betula pendula/weeping - A great deal of variation occurs in habit from weeping to nearly erect, just the nature of the tree from seed

Betula pubescens aka downey/silver birch - somewhat pendulous, overall teardrop shape

Cultivar Betula Dalecarlica, cut-leaf weeping birch, commonly grown street tree in BC

Also Youngs Weeping birch - Betula pendula Youngii. Strongly weeping, umbrella shape, usually grafted onto standard trunk.

I think all should be hardy your zone (and lower) but I don't know exactly which birch you mean, there's a lotta birch being grown in the PNW. Are you already growing birch to be familiar with them - they aren't my fav tree for small to average residential lots. My mother planted a few and now that she is less able to take care of her landscape without help (4 hr round trip), I find them a pain. Messy, leaf and twig drop not to mention tons of papery seeds, call for a lot of raking and gutter cleaning. The roots can lift sidewalks too, and appear in the lawn...could be better in soil not clay based but my own experience with them doesn't lead me to want to plant them myself...for whatever that's worth :)

louisiana gal, brilliant, I'll cram or stuff newspaper! Yes, I'm holding back enough of my favorite seeds. I'll let people know if I have some fluke germination from old seeds, have little to lose and can re-use the soil.

morz8, thank you for all that info. Will copy and save it. I swear I'm a nutcase. I have no place open for a weeping birch. But I was so intrigued with them, enchanted would be a better word. So I shouldn't really have even asked.

All you say and more is true about birch. I've got a clump of 3 I planted over 30 years ago in the front yard, kids were very small and, surprisingly (for them) very interested in the planting and watching them grow. The roots grow right at the surface, encroach in some of the planting areas. Now that they're older, they're messy and I'm constantly cleaning up twigs and branches. I love them though. The white isn't so pretty any more. Horror of horrors, would I have them taken out and stumps ground? I suppose not; they have sentimental value.

As if all you mentioned isn't bad enough, they're a magnet for Japanese beetles which we didn't have until about 5 years ago now, munch too high up to do anything about.

They help so much with shade in the hot front in the summer. I'd miss them too much I think, are on the decline but could outlive me.

Ha ha. If trees could talk what stories they could tell. My granddaughter carved her first love in the bark years ago. When she was back on a visit, she had to look to see if it was still there; it is but faint. One limb is special for the kids to climb up and get their picture taken. I'll quick try to find just one but can't remember all the grandkids and neighbor kids who have loved that branch.

Please forgive me for whiling away the time, am trying not to think about my sore tooth and headache.

A little visitor in 2007 (not related):

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Another visitor in 2006:

{{gwi:353483}}

I had a lovely weeping Drake elm in New Orleans, not sure if that is a good tree for PNW, but might satisfy your craving if it is. It does not get very large.
Laurie

I'll check those out and see if they are hardy for my zone. Elms did well here, lost them to Dutch elm but think they are making a comeback. Thanks, Laurie.

I love weeping trees, just after I planted my pussywillow saw a weeping one at Lowe's, now mine is doing great so maybe just as well. Was thinking of taking the pussy willow out while it's still small because it's another Jap beetle magnet, but love to see those catkins in the spring, don't know where there any others around here, remember when in grade school, kids would sometimes bring them in for the teacher. I took a weeping cherry I bought down to the farm and planted it, but there was no one to water it then and couldn't get back soon enough to do it myself, was working, kids, 100 mi round trip.

Weeping willows are nice but not if you can't get them way back and away from the house. Neighbor has a huge one, and it's so pretty in the spring and early summer, contrasty light green against the darker. Got a photo of it but won't post any more today lol.

Aliska, I'm glad you weren't offended by my dislike of birch :) I was trying to show some restraint and not add that here they are magnets for aphids. On the one hand, I always know where I can get a few more ladybugs to bring home from Moms, but it doesn't matter if I park curbside or in her driveway, I have honeydew from aphids all over my car when I leave.

I do think the bark is pretty. From a distance.

Feel better soon!

morz8, no I wasn't offended at all. I just always loved seeing them in the wild up north and stories when I was a kid about how the Indians made canoes out of the bark (certain kind), not too good for the tree I wouldn't think.

I hate aphids, see I have quite a few on my flowers. Maybe it's the birch tree. Most of the lower branches have long since been trimmed off so I can't see what's higher up. I park my car close to that tree all the time and never get any sticky on it. But I do get those dropped pendulous seed stringy things and lots of leaves in the fall on my car.

If I were to lose those (they're only supposed to be good for 30 yrs and they're past that), I don't know what I would put in their place. There was never a tree there that I can tell, and I have an old slide of my oldest daughter's first day of kindergarten standing in that very spot, sans birches.

Thanks, people, for answering my questions. I pulled out more seeds to sow later. Speaking of really old seeds, I have some larskpur from 1996 it says. I think I'll plant them.

I sure need ladybugs, prefer the red ones. Have started seeing them again, hope they are here with babies this year!

Aliska,
I have an incidental question for you.
I googled "how to grow a red bud tree from seed" and an old post of yours from the tree forum came up. well How are they doing?
I ordered some seeds to winter sow and I'm excited to know how fast they grow.
thanks
:)Laura

Laura, they all died. I had them transplanted into pepsi bottles tops cut off with drainage holes but maybe not big enough. Plus I should have plunged them into the ground and didn't, am always tired and overwhelmed by fall, so let them sit all winter behind the dripline in a little alcove in the front, south facing. Some had gotten damaged when the house was painted. Getting paint spattered on leaves shouldn't have overly harmed them but didn't help. Plus some had gotten pushed or something to the point I had to tie them to little stakes.

Since I don't have a cold frame, a post hole digger would have done the trick for so many in the bottles, maybe, think I had around 27, but didn't know if I could handle the labor of that.

If you read my old post, you know how to get them started. I've still got some seeds and may winter sow a few. I can easily get more.

But based on my observance now that I know what to look for, the sandpaper and direct planting should be no problem at all so long as they have adequate water until the roots go deeper after sprouting, the area kept clear and don't get walked on or mowed over, marked with a stake. Plus I've seen them come up as volunteers since then, one in a tub of junk that wasn't really even composted, tried to save it but the taproot was too long, deep and wound around stuff, and I messed that up, a nice one.

I still feel sad about them though and lost 2 or 3 years. They take 7 I read from seed to bloom. I collected the seeds that were low hanging right off the tree in the spring just when the redbuds started to bloom and picked up some pods from the alley, dried them out well on a paper towel I think, and they turned out to be easy to get the pods off.

My neighbor has birch but I don't know what kind. I swear I'm going to burn it down some day. I get a million volunteers in my yard every year with HUGE taproots.

Karen

Aliska,
what a bummer. Sorry to hear they all died. I just sowed 10 jugs with about 30 seeds in each. If nothing sprouts I'll do the sand paper way in the spring.
Thanks for the prompt response.
:)Laura

Karen, my goodness, I certainly wouldn't want a birch tree like that. Mine never do that. BTW, I'm only fond of the ones with white bark. River Birch does well around here, but I don't like it as well. The bark isn't as white, more of a cream or beige and peels, and I think the peeled look may be part of the appeal to those that grow it.

Laura, you're welcome. I read if you don't sandpaper, they can take up to 3 years or so in nature, not sure about that though. Good luck with yours. They're so pretty in the spring and work in very well with other trees and shrubs.

Another favorite of mine is linden, tried to root some of a variety I took a special liking to. They are not all the same. But the Jap beetles love those, too. I don't know how the one I had planted on my favorite cat's grave on the farm is doing; they had an awful problem with Jap beetles this year in the corn.